The Environment Agency has been given new powers to recover the cost of clearing up after fly-tippers. From now on, offenders will have to foot the bill.

New measures in the Clean Neighbourhoods and Environment Act also give local authorities more effective investigatory powers to catch fly-tippers, as well as the capacity to remove abandoned cars from the streets.

The cost of clearing up the mess left by fly-tippers can now also be recovered by landowners and occupiers who have had to clear illegally tipped waste.

Any tippers found guilty could end up paying the full costs incurred by councils for clearing the waste and investigating the crime. Vehicles used in tipping can also be seized and searched.

In June, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), announced the first measures in the Clean Neighbourhoods and Environment Act, which included fines of up to £50,000 and five years in prison for fly-tipping.

A national database, called Flycapture, has also been launched, which details incidents of fly-tipping, actions taken and money spent.